Will DGB Chairman's Third Term Be Blocked? Lee Bok-hyun Says "Changing Age Limit Is Like Changing Rules Mid-Game in Soccer"

Lee Bok-hyun, Governor of the Financial Supervisory Service, is delivering opening remarks at the CEO meeting of foreign financial companies held on the 12th at the Fairmont Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

Lee Bok-hyun, Governor of the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), criticized the possibility of changing the rules to allow Kim Tae-oh, Chairman of DGB Financial Group, to serve a third term, saying it is like "starting a soccer game and changing the rules halfway through."

On the 5th, after a ceremony for the 'Agreement to Promote Prevention of Non-face-to-face Financial Accidents' held at the FSS in Yeouido, Seoul, Governor Lee made these remarks to reporters. He added, "Considering DGB's efforts so far, I think they would not do that, and it is an effort to eliminate reasonable age restrictions rather than a self-renewal, which I believe is a misunderstanding."

DGB Financial held a Chairman Candidate Recommendation Committee meeting on the 25th of last month and began the process of appointing the next chairman. Chairman Kim faces an 'age limit' regulation for a third term. Some speculate that the board might change the current age regulation, which is 67 years old, to allow Kim's reappointment. Born in November 1954, Kim is currently 68 years old and will be 69 by the end of his term in March next year.

Regarding the reappointment of financial holding company chairmen, he expressed a negative view, saying, "A third term can create a tilted playing field due to the amount of information held compared to other competitors and personal relationships with the board, etc. Solutions tailored to each financial company's circumstances are needed."

Governor Lee also commented on the succession process of the KB Financial Group chairman, saying, "It is true that efforts were made to do relatively well," but added, "That is not good enough." He continued, "Originally, the evaluation criteria and methods should be publicized so that candidates can compete, but the fact that the candidate pool was decided first and then the evaluation criteria and methods were set indicates room for improvement."

Regarding the increase in household debt, he explained, "The increase in September (across the entire financial sector) is expected to decrease by about 1 trillion won compared to the previous month," and added, "The increase in mortgage loans is also likely to statistically significantly decrease compared to the previous month." Governor Lee said, "The household debt-to-GDP ratio was about 105.4% in 2021, but now it is slightly below 102%. The fundamental principle of this government is that the household debt growth rate should fall relative to the nominal growth rate."

Furthermore, in response to concerns that the monetary authorities' tightening stance might conflict with the financial authorities' coexistence finance policies and various policy mortgages (secured loans), he drew a clear line, saying, "There is no disagreement between the monetary authorities (Bank of Korea) and the financial authorities. I believe the Monetary Policy Committee will make a reasonable decision."

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